County authorizes application for $25,000 Critical Area grant to review local rules

St. Mary’s County commissioners on May 6 authorized the Department of Land Use and Growth Management to apply for a $25,000 Maryland Critical Area Commission grant for fiscal year 2026 to support a comprehensive review of the county’s local critical-area program.

Amanda Yowell, environmental planning division manager, told the commission the grant would fund staff time or be used with a consultant to complete a required review of critical-area regulations and ensure consistency with recent state regulatory changes. “Comprehensive review is required on a regular basis,” Yowell told commissioners, noting a recent state regulation requires a review of local critical-area rules every 10 years.

Commissioners asked whether the grant would be used to reduce regulatory burden for property owners where state law allows; Yowell said the grant could support work to identify amendments that reduce unnecessary burdens while keeping the county in compliance with state law. The grant requires no local match and would not affect the department’s regular budget.

The commission voted to authorize the application and to allow the commission president to sign related documents. Staff said they would return with any proposed amendments or follow-up work resulting from the grant-funded review.